Pittsburgh Steelers: Landry Jones, Future Franchise Quarterback

In the fourth round of this year’s NFL draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted quarterback Landry Jones from the University of Oklahoma. This season, Jones is expected to play behind Ben Roethlisberger, but how long will Jones be a backup quarterback? If you ask me, not that long.

While at Oklahoma, Jones led the Sooners to double-digit wins in all of his seasons as the starting quarterback. With Jones at the helm, Oklahoma went 3-1 in bowl games including their Fiesta Bowl victory against Connecticut. Jones had great success at Oklahoma, totaling 16,646 yards and 123 touchdowns. All of this while filling the big shoes of Sam Bradford.

Jones proved in his college career that he is an accurate passer, completing over 60 percent of his passes every season as a starter. His outstanding bowl record shows that he has the intangibles, and the ability to win the big games. He has the ability to throw the deep ball and has great football knowledge and understanding of defenses.

Jones a traditional pocket passer with not much mobility, but he has good size and is able to look over the offensive line. These physical and mental attributes are what every quarterback in the NFL needs.

Landry Jones is going to be starting his career behind a great quarterback in Roethlisberger. He is going to have the chance to learn the NFL game and be able to develop. Jones has all the skills that it takes to be a NFL quarterback and, as was the case with Aaron Rodgers, he gets a chance to learn and develop as a backup. These reasons add up to Jones being a great starting quarterback in the NFL.

If history is any sign, Jones is likely to get his chances to play even before he is ready with the many injury problems Roethlisberger has had. Get ready for Landry Jones because when he gets his chance he will capitalize on it and become a really good NFL quarterback.

About Tyler Jeski

Correspondent for the Pittsburgh Steelers and broadcast production and programming major at Point Park University. For as long as I can remember I have been a Steelers fan so writing about the Steelers here is a dream come true. You can follow me on Twitter @TMACJETT

Scottbohaczyk

I need rookie qb laundry jones start play pittsburgh steelers

JJ

Shawn, I think Jones has the potential to be a good NFL QB. It is true that Jones had some mediocre games in college and at times he did get rattled. He did get better in these respects his senior year. That being said, Jones has the size and arm strength that NFL teams look for. I think his game will translate to the NFL a lot better than some guys. Looking for perfection in college is a poor way to judge an NFL QB.

In college at a top school you are expected to be perfect every week. Nobody can expect this from an NFL QB as the game is just too competitive at the NFL level. Jones will have ups and downs and will get rattled at times early in his career but I suspect he will turn out to be a good QB. His size, arm strength, calm demeanor will serve him well. Not to mention that he’s a model citizen which is always a plus.

Shawn

I live in Oklahoma and have been a Sooner supporter for over 35 years. I watched every game Jones played at Oklahoma. You claim that while at Oklahoma Jones proved that he could win the big ones. I beg to differ, GREATLY! His stats including his 3-1 bowl record are very misleading. His bowl wins were against teams that were clearly overmatched, while his one bowl loss was against the only quality defense that he faced in a bowl game. Jones’ record amount of touchdowns is also greatly misleading. Why you ask, just look at Jones’ number of interceptions and fumbles and you will see that Jones had a TD to turnover ratio of 2/1. Now it doesn’t take a genius to realize that if a QB in the NFL has 1 turnover to every 2 TDs then he won’t be around for long. No, Jones’ true qualities were that he foldef under pressure. That’s why he is so fondly called Landry, the lawn chair, Jones by Oklahoma fans.

Do me a favor Jim Beam, for the next 35 years go down to the trailer park in stillwater and support Dexter Manley U. It got, and gets old hearing how Landry was a flop, from uneducated, band wagon fans. We have been through 6 qb’s, two of which were Heisman Trophy winners since 2000, and none of them accomplished a National Championship. It will be interesting to see your opinion on Blake Bell.

Alec Mieras

don’t know how i feel about Landry but this definitely is a well written article. I personally don’t know if Landry has a future in the NFL but this article definitely sells him pretty well.

bluebelly83

Good thoughts Tyler! This was seriously more analysis in a short piece than I often read at other much more prominent sports sites. Keep it up! I’ll be looking for more Pittsburgh sports coverage from you soon.

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Born and raised in Southern New Jersey, I follow the NHL and other hockey leagues. I follow the Philadelphia Flyers as well as the St. Louis Blues. I go to American University in Washington DC. I major in International Studies and Russian Language, and I also play Division 3 Club ice hockey. Writing about current NHL topics since 2015.
You can find Jared on Twitter @Wainer78